Fastener and combination thereof with strings and tags of tea-bags or the like



Sept. 10,.1935. KELLER FASTENER AND COMBINATION THEREOF WITH STRINGS AND TAGS OF TEA BAGS OR'THE LIKE Filed Jan. 26, 1955 IN VENTOR.

Patented Sept. 10, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFICE FASTENER AND COMBENATION THEREOF WITH STRINGS AND TAGS OF TEA-BAGS OR THE LIKE Application January 26, 1935, Serial No. 3,591

1 Claim.

This invention relates to fasteners for attaching strings to tags of tea-bags or the like, and to a combination of such fasteners with strings and tags, and provides improvements therein.

The present invention provides a metallic fastener for attaching strings to tags of tea-bags or the like, which is of great simplicity and effectiveness; which is well adapted for use with automatic machines for applying the fasteners; and which may be cut from a strip of flat metal without waste. It also provides a novel and improved combination of fastener, string and tag. Other features of advantage and improvement are set forth in the description which follows:

Embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the accompanying drawing wherein:

Fig. 1 illustrates a tea-bag from which extends a string which is attached to a tag by means of a fastener according to the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view illustrating the fastener with the parts fiat, i. e. as it is cut from a flat strip of metal;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the fastener with parts of the head portion bent over upon one another and holding between them the end of the string.

Fig. 4 is a plan View of the fastener applied to a tag and clamping a string.

Fig. 5 is a transverse section through the parts shown in Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a plan view illustrating the shapes of a plurality of the fasteners with respect to a flat strip of metal from which the fasteners are cut.

Referring to said drawing, numeral Ill designates the metallic fastener, prior to bending in its application for use. It is in the form of a flat piece of sheet metal having substantially the form illustrated. The fastener illustrated in the drawing is about ten times the size of the fastener which is made and used in practice for attaching the strings of tea-bags to bags. The relation of a plurality of the fasteners having the form illustrated in Fig. 2 with relation to a strip of metal P of minimum width from which it may be cut is illustrated in Fig. 6. All of the material goes into the formation of the fasteners Hi and there is no waste. The capability of cutting fasteners from a flat strip of sheet metal, is an advantageous feature as it adapts the fastener to the use of automatic machines for applying the fasteners, the supply of fasteners being obtained from a flat strip of sheet metal P which is fed to the machine.

The fastener comprises a head I l and a prong M. The head H comprises a part l2 extending across the base of the prong l4, and a part It extending laterally of the prong. Each of these portions I2, i i, and it have flat sides. The flat sides of the head and of the prong are so constructed and arranged that when the prong is passed through a tag T, as indicated at 18, and the prong is bent over against the tag, as illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5, the flat sides of the prong and of the part :12 of the head lie opposite one another on, and press against the opposite sides of the tag T, thereby securely fastening the tag, the tag being held by the pressure of the flat sides of the part it and of the prong l4 against the opposite sides of the tab T.

The part it of the head H extends laterally at one side of the part I2 of the head as shown, and preferably has an area approximating the area of the part it of the head. The flat sides of the parts 52 and 16 of the head H are so constructed and arranged that when the part H5 is bent over along the line of bend 25! against the string S (extending from a tea-bag B for example) lying on said part ii! of the head, the flat sides of the parts 92 and iii of said head face one another, either in partial contact or in close juXta-position, and act to press the string S between said flat sides of said parts i2 and i6 and thereby hold the string securely attached to the fastener, and attached through the fastener to the tag T. The construction and arrangement of the parts of fastener it} are furthermore such that a pull on the string S is substantially at right angles to the bend it where the prong passes through the bag T, the portion of the fastener at the bend l8 transmitting the pull to the tag along the broad fiat face of the prong along the line of bend l8. Moreover the string is firmly held between the broad faces of two pieces of metal, and not clamped or held between the metal part of the fastener and the softer material of the tag as in other types of fasteners used for attaching the strings to tags.

The prong M is made long enough to extend lengthwise of the part 12 when bent over, to provide a large area of contact between the bentover flat side of the prong and the adjacent face of the tag, so that the tag is held on its two sides by the flat sides of the head part l2 and of the prong M of considerable area. Moreover, the prong preferably is of a width substantially equal to the width of the part I2 of the head. Prong M is also preferably made with two parallel edges 24, 26. The end edge i8 is preferably at an angle of to the edges 24, 26, thereby providing a point 313 at its end. The end edge 25 may correspond to the edge of the flat stop P cut. The inside edge 24 is preferably arranged substantially in line with the line of bend 29 along which the clamping-portion I6 is bent over onto the head-portion I 2 (as indicated in Figs. 2 and 5) because with the edge 24 having the described relation, the strip P from which a plurality of the fasteners I0 are out has a minimum Width for a given length of prong.

As will be seen from the foregoing description, the fastener is of the greatest simplicity, and functions to securely attach the strings of teabags to tags; and is furthermore of a' form especially well suited to the formation thereof from a flat strip of metal to application by means of machinery.

The fasteners may have other forms than that 7 herein specifically illustrated and described.

What is claimed is:

2,014,254 of the metal from which the fastener may be In combination, a tag, a string, and a onepiece metallic fastener for attaching said string to said tag, said fastener being made from a strip comprising a single prong and a head-portion extending across the base of said prong and laterally beyond at one side, each of which has flat sides, said fastener extending through the tag and having a bend in the prong adjacent the head-portion and the fiat sides of said prong and of the head-portion lying opposite one another on opposite sides of the tag and in contact with the latter, said head-portion having a bend therein between the laterally extending-portion and the part which extends across the base of the prong, with the parts of the head on each side of said bend facing one another flat-wise and bearing upon said string to clamp and hold the same.

ANDREW KELLER. 

